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Arsenic is present in rice grain mainly as inorganic arsenic. Little is known about the effect of cooking on inorganic arsenic content in rice and its bioavailability. This study evaluated total arsenic and inorganic arsenic in rice cooked with arsenic-contaminated water, the bioaccessibility of As(III) and As(V) after simulated gastrointestinal digestion, and the extent of arsenic retention and transport by Caco-2 cells used as a model of intestinal epithelia. After cooking, inorganic arsenic contents increase significantly. After simulated gastrointestinal digestion, the bioaccessibility of inorganic arsenic reached 63-99%; As(V) was the main species found. In Caco-2 cells, arsenic retention, transport, and total uptake (retention + transport) varied between 0.6 and 6.4, 3.3 and 11.4, and 3.9 and 17.8%, respectively. These results show that in arsenic endemic areas with subsistence rice diets, the contribution of inorganic arsenic from cooked rice should be considered in assessments of arsenic health risk.

The total arsenic, inorganic arsenic, lead, cadmium, and mercury contents of 18 algae food products currently on sale in Spain were determined. The suitability of the analytical methodologies for this type of matrix was confirmed by evaluating their analytical characteristics. The concentration ranges found for each contaminant, expressed in milligrams per kilogram of dry weight, were as follows: total arsenic, 2.3-141; inorganic arsenic, 0.15-88; lead, < 0.05-1.33; cadmium, 0.03-1.9; and mercury, 0.004-0.04. There is currently no legislation in Spain regarding contaminants in algae food products, but some of the samples analyzed revealed Cd and inorganic As levels higher than those permitted by legislation in other countries. Given the high concentrations of inorganic As found in Hizikia fusiforme, a daily consumption of 1.7 g of the product would reach the Provisional Tolerable Weekly Intake recommended by the WHO for an average body weight of 68 kg. A more comprehensive study of the contents and toxicological implications of the inorganic As present in the algae food products currently sold in Spain may be necessary, which might then be the basis for the introduction of specific sales restrictions.

The aim of this study was to examine the bioaccessibility (maximum soluble concentration in gastrointestinal medium) of total (AsT) and inorganic (AsI) arsenic contents and the effect on them of cooking edible seaweed, a food of great interest because of its high As content. An in vitro gastrointestinal digestion (pepsin, pH 2, and pancreatin-bile extract, pH 7) was applied to obtain the mineral soluble fraction of three seaweeds (Hizikia fusiforme, Porphyra sp., and Enteromorpha sp.). AsT was determined by dry-ashing flow injection hydride generation atomic absorption spectrometry. AsI was determined by acid digestion, solvent extraction, and flow injection hydride generation atomic absorption spectrometry. The bioaccessibility of AsI increased significantly after cooking, attaining 73% in Porphyra sp. and 88% in H. fusiforme. For cooked H. fusiforme, the AsI attained in the bioaccessible fraction was 26 microg g(-1) seaweed, a concentration that is a warning of the toxicological risk of this food.